Tips for Using Lyft & Uber at Disney World
Thinking of using Uber or Lyft instead of a taxi, rental car, or bus transportation at Walt Disney World? Ride-sharing services are the most efficient way for getting to parks, resorts, and Universal Studios Florida; these tips will help save money and improve your experience with it. (Updated March 24, 2021.)
During the phased reopening, Walt Disney World transportation options are limited and operating at reduced capacity. Fewer parties are allowed on each bus to accommodate physical distancing, and the result has been longer and more unpredictable wait times for buses. We discuss how bad this has gotten as of Spring Break 2021 in Bus Wait Times at Walt Disney World.
Consequently, our “Temporary Abnormal” Guide to Walt Disney World recommends avoiding the buses for this reason. Unfortunately, the Minnie Van private ride service has been suspended and is not returning any time soon–if ever. That essentially leaves two options: Uber or a rental car. However, the latter option comes with a couple of big downsides…
While we’re fans of the freedom having your own vehicle offers, not everyone wants to drive on vacation and there are obvious downsides in paying for parking and hassling with the car at the airport. Beyond that, there is currently a severe rental car shortage.
Last year when travel essentially stopped, the rental car industry sold off more than a half a million cars, about a third of their combined fleets, to generate cash they needed to survive the crisis. Although demand has now returned, rental car companies are unable to rebuild their inventory because of supply chain issues facing the auto industry.
Consequently, many Florida airports are now totally sold out of rental cars for peak travel dates (including Orlando International) with other dates having insane prices–like $100 to $300 per day for a rental. Suffice to say, if you didn’t book a rental car for your Walt Disney World vacation far in advance, Uber or Lyft might be your only alternative to Disney’s buses. As such, we’ll rundown the pros & cons of rideshare at Walt Disney World here…
First and foremost in terms of a post-reopening update, both ride share companies have new health safety programs. You can read about Lyft’s here and Uber’s here. Both are essentially the same, with face masks being required for drivers and riders, new cleaning procedures, and keeping the windows open when possible.
Masks are important and well-understood at this point, but we would emphasize opening the windows. Study after study has shown that ventilation is one of the keys in reducing transmission risks (check out “We Need To Talk About Ventilation,” which breaks things down in lay terms). When using taxis or ride share services, professors at Harvard’s School of Public Health suggest that you “open up the windows just a bit, even if everyone is feeling fine…doing so will dilute the concentration of viral particles in the car.”
Thankfully, even as bus transportation has gotten worse at Walt Disney World, using Uber and Lyft has actually gotten better over time! Cast Members and security have become more familiar with ride-sharing services, and Walt Disney World has introduced policies for consistent drop-off/pick-up.
As such, we highly recommend using Uber or Lyft for rope drop in the morning–especially at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, where arriving in time for opening and the Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance boarding pass dash is imperative. (Unless you’re staying at a Skyliner resort.) Uber and Lyft can also be incredibly useful if you’re leaving any of the parks at closing time, and there are long lines at the bus stops.
In fact, using ride-sharing at Walt Disney World has been a such a positive experience for us that we thought we’d return to offer the ins and outs of it, and why we think it’s worth the added cost for the added convenience. We’ve used Uber and Lyft extensively at Walt Disney World in the last 5+ years, and have updated this advice as of March 2021…
For most people, Uber or Lyft will be cheaper than renting a car, but some people still might prefer the perceived freedom of their own car. We also wanted to provide some new tips based on things we’ve learned with more recent experiences using Uber.
To start, although the details here are specific to Walt Disney World, the high-level advice can be applied to Disneyland and virtually anywhere else Lyft and Uber operate in the United States. In many cases throughout this post, we reference only Uber, and that’s simply because they have a larger presence. Corporate culture aside, Uber and Lyft are nearly identical in guest experience and service, and these tips apply equally to both ride-sharing services.
By way of background (you can skip all of this if you’ve ever used Uber), Uber is ride service that allow users to request rides via robust mobile apps. These apps show drivers in your vicinity, anticipated pick-up time, and have a host of other features. When a ride is requested, nearby drivers are pinged, and can accept or decline the riders.
Riders then see that their ride has been accepted, the driver’s name, vehicle, license plate, average score, current GPS location, and arrival time. This is all virtually instantaneous: the amount of time from requesting a ride to a ride being confirmed is usually under 10 seconds. If all of that doesn’t totally make sense, think of Uber as a taxi for the modern age, with a really nice app.
Does that all sound pretty good? Well, it should, because it is. Uber and Lyft have exploded in popularity, which has wrecked havoc for taxi companies that are rapidly losing business and are in danger of obsolescence in some areas. Taxi companies have fought bitter political and legal battles to keep Uber out of many areas, with the dispute boiling down to one thing: money. Taxi companies want to keep making money, and Uber makes that difficult for them.
As a consumer, the only pertinent concerns are whether Uber safe, efficient, and less expensive. Uber is obviously less expensive. That’s the whole reason taxi companies are fighting Uber tooth and nail. It’s cheaper because it’s more efficient, allocating resources via the app in a way that makes best use of them, with the app likewise providing a more efficient experience for riders.
Finally, safety. None of the above would matter if Uber isn’t safe. Uber performs background checks on its drivers (as do taxi companies), but more important is the rating system in the app. If a driver’s score falls below 4.5/5, they run the risk of being dropped by Uber. The flip side of this is that drivers also rate riders, so if you’re constantly an angry, drunken buffoon, you run the risk of not being picked up.
By contrast, ask any regular Uber rider how many negative experiences they’ve had with ride-sharing drivers. The horror stories are few and far between, with most riders instead gushing over how much better the experience is than traditional taxis. Friendly drivers who come from interesting backgrounds and will make pleasant conversation with you, or simply leave you alone if you don’t feel like chatting.
Now that we’ve established some background, let’s get into the tips…
General Tips
- Payment is automatically made via the app (and your attached credit card) at the end of the app. No cash payments.
- Tipping originally was not part of the Uber “culture” but it is becoming increasingly customary to tip drivers. You can now do so within the apps for both Uber and Lyft. (We recommend tipping.)
- A pleasant way to end each ride is by saying, “thanks for the great ride, I’ll be sure to give you 5-stars.” (Which also helps increase your chances of receiving a positive review from the driver.)
- If you have more general questions about using Uber that this post doesn’t answer, refer to the Uber Help page for FAQ.
- If you’re new to the Lyft, you can get a free or reduced-cost first ride via this link.
Disney Tips
- Average Uber/Lyft cost within Walt Disney World is $10-15 per trip. This works out to be around one-third to half the cost of a Mears taxi for the same distance.
- Average Uber cost from Walt Disney World to Universal Orlando’s drop-off point is $20-25 per trip.
- Average wait for a pick-up at Walt Disney World is 4-8 minutes.
- Security check-point and parking plaza Cast Members are familiar with the Uber service, and will allow drivers to pass (without paying for parking) if they show an ID and indicate they are there for guest drop-off.
- DO NOT show your Annual Pass or parking voucher at the parking plazas, as your driver will be directed to regular parking, which is farther away from the front entrance of parks than the guest drop-off points.
- Surge pricing is becoming less common in Orlando as more drivers flock to the area, but if there is a surge, it’s most likely to occur around 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 9:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.
- Lyft and Uber pickups are now allowed at MCO; there’s an airport surcharge added to your tab, but it’s not too bad. Uber drop-offs are also allowed at the airport. Uber and Lyft are far faster than Disney’s Magical Express.
- Drivers can see your GPS location, but sometimes the system is a bit wonky. Immediately after requesting an Uber, message the driver and indicate your exact location if it’s not the main lobby (e.g. “I’m wearing a ballin’ tie dyed EPCOT Center shirt outside Building 4 at Pop Century Resort. Turn left as soon as you pass security and follow the signs.)
- To decrease your wait time for a pickup, drop a pin for the location where you want the pickup as you walk to that location, but be sure you can beat the driver there based on the estimated arrival time.
- Uber has unveiled the Uber + Car Seat in Orlando, which will bring parents an Uber vehicle with a car seat inside, on-demand.
Magic Kingdom
- Standard pickup and drop-off location for the Magic Kingdom is the Ticket & Transportation Center; from there, you take a monorail or ferry to the Magic Kingdom.
- Instead, consider specifying the Contemporary or Grand Floridian as your destination and walking to Magic Kingdom.
- Security at the Contemporary isn’t always the easiest to pass, so don’t be surprised if you’re turned away there. Grand Floridian is the better option, but the walk is slightly longer.
Epcot
- The Uber process at Epcot has improved considerably. The only downside is that the roadway into the park and parking lot itself are both lengthy, making pickups take longer than at the other 3 parks.
- If possible, we recommend using the International Gateway entrance at Epcot, and walking to/from Beach Club for pickups and drop-offs. This is simpler, and often faster.
- The pickup and drop-off spot at the front entrance of Epcot has constantly changed, but as of now, it’s near the Preferred Parking section.
Disney’s Hollywood Studios
- Drop-off and pickup at Disney’s Hollywood Studios is right next to the Disney Skyliner gondola station (lower left corner in the photo above). This location is very convenient.
- Due to the popularity of Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, the drop-off line can back-up early in the morning before DHS opens. Plan accordingly and allow yourself a bit of extra time.
- If you request an Uber ride as you exit the park, your driver will often arrive within 2 minutes after you get to the taxi point at DHS. Just make sure you double-check that there isn’t a driver already near the Studios lot when you make the request, as you don’t want your driver having to wait for you!
Disney’s Animal Kingdom
- Animal Kingdom is another park with a long roadway leading into the park, so pickups can take a bit longer here, but it’s still pretty simple.
- The drop-off/pickup spot is also pretty simple at Animal Kingdom. You can see it as the pin on this map.
That about covers the major points, I think. If you’re new to using Uber, you can get a free ride credits by signing up via this link for Uber or a free ride on Lyft via this link. They are constantly changing their sign-up incentives, so if you don’t see any credit amount on those screens, definitely Google signup offers. There’s usually an incentive or promo code for your first ride on both Uber and Lyft.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
Your Thoughts
Any additional experiences using Uber that you’d like to share? Do you prefer Uber, Lyft, Minnie Vans, or using Walt Disney World’s standard (bus, monorail, boat, Skyliner) transportation? If you’ve used Uber or Lyft at Walt Disney World, did you find the services efficient? Do you agree or disagree with our Uber/Lyft advice? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
There are really no good alternatives for families with kids under 4 years old. There are major issues with Uber + Car Seat. I am a certified child passenger safety technician (aka car seat tech), mom of 3 kids, and Disney lover. Our last trip was at the very end of January/beginning of February 2020. We used Uber + Car Seat twice for our early DHS mornings. My youngest child was 4 at the time and 43-ish pounds. The first attempt at Uber + Car Seat had an illegal non-US car seat that did not appear to be installed correctly at all. The second attempt a few days later had a car seat that was outgrown by my 4-year-old by both the weight limit (40 lb) and torso height. It was also obviously not installed correctly. Luckily we had brought along a portable booster for my middle child (7, almost 8 at the time) so we put my 4yo in the booster and had my 7yo go without a booster, which wasn’t optimal at all but ROTR was more important than my children’s safety (kidding, kind of). Minnie Vans were my go-to recommendation for families with young kids and what we used for our trip at the end of 2017. I’m so bummed they are no longer an option.
This is so helpful, I feared this exact thing. Thank you for this comment!
Ashley, I love that you’re a car seat tech. My dad did the same thing and I learned an awful lot. We won’t use ride shares for a variety of reasons, lack of proper car seats and the training to install them is on the list.
Keep up the good work!
Has anyone tried taking an Uber to the Contemporary recently? I’m not sure if it is worth trying that for my trip in May, or if we should just head straight to the TTC. We will be trying to rope drop. Any advice is appreciated 🙂
We haven’t done it recently, but lots of reports of people being turned away in the last month. TTC is probably the safest bet.
I just finished a week starting at the Hyatt Grand Cypress using Lyft to go to the parks. I would recommend people sign up for Lyft pink to get 15% off for $20. I found getting rides to and from the closest resorts like Riviera, Saratoga, etc was the least expensive then using Disney transportation from there. The gondolas worked great for Epcot and HS from Riviera. Someone asked about from off at the Contemporary… No issues this morning getting dropped off
Is there Transportation from the parks to Disney Springs? Or, do we need to Uber there?
We stayed at Pop Century at the beginning of March. We try to get an Uber or Lyft to go to the Polynesian for breakfast at 7:20 on a Monday morning. The price was $50! The price went down to about $42 at 7:30. We ended up having to call a Mears taxi and still paid $22. Also took an Uber to DHS and we were held outside the parking lot until 8:15 on a 9:00 a.m. opening day.
The Contemporary may turn rideshares away if you are not staying there or have a reservation for meals. I have been told to turn around depending who the security guard is at the gate while ubering.
Also the parks are now starting to open an hour before hand but Hollywood Studios is the most challenging to enter because the rideshare lane is not exclusive.
Plan accordingly if staying at Pop Century. Be sure you ask what buses are running. Buses have not been running to Hollywood Studios.
Also keep in mind that you can schedule a ride pick up with Uber. Especially if you are competing with other in the morning for rides.
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So interesting.
What happens if they turn you away?
Can you basically hop out and walk?
i wanted to add my 2 cents. I was at Animal Kingdom on October 8 and Epcot on October 9. I stayed at Old Key West. We did NOT have any issues with the busses. I waited maybe 10 minutes before park open for AK and zero minutes for Epcot, to the point that I got a rope drop and was on my first ride 15 minutes before the park opened! At the end of the day we were just fine. Left AK at 1530 and the buss showed up at 1600 (right on schedule) and we left Epcot at 2130. Hours for AK was 0900-1700 and Epcot was 1100-2100.
I have a 5 year old that needs a car seat, does Uber or Lyft offer that option? Or will that be difficult to come by?
You should look into getting an inflatable booster for trips. We keep a Bubble Bum rolled up in our backpack for our second grader. 🙂
Lyft and Uber are known to not have safe car seats. Either the seat itself is unsafe or it’s not installed properly. I’d be very careful using a ride share like that.
My family of five just returned from a weekend trip to Disney. We stayed at Yacht Club so it was easy to walk to Epcot and walk or take the gondolas to DHS. For Magic Kingdom we took an uber our first morning and got dropped off at the TTC. That took a long time to then get to the Magic Kingdom by Monorail. After that we took the bus and it was wonderful the three times we rode it. We literally had it to ourselves twice. It felt like we had our own huge limo. The other time we were in the back and another family was in the front of the bus. I am sure experiences will vary but I wouldn’t hesitate to use the bus again and thought it was far more efficient than an uber.
We are staying off property at the Club Wyndham at Bonnet Creek in December. Would it be efficient to Uber over to the Caribbean Skyliner station and ride to HS? Or would it just be best to Uber all the way?
Just got back home from 8 days staying at Pop! Century, Disney had buses stacked at Pop to get people to Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom. Of course, the Skyliner was the only way to get to Hollywood Studios or Epcot, but those lines, although crazy long, moved pretty efficiently. We may have had to wait longer than 5 minutes for a bus twice during our entire stay and those times were getting from the park back to the resort. Disney had their act together getting guests from Pop to the parks. It was quite impressive. Can’t speak to the other resorts.
Thanks for the blogs Tom, they’re a great source of well explained information!
Thank you! Good to hear this. We are leaving Sunday for our 6 days at Disney and staying at Pop! Did you do rope drop at HS? I’m wondering if driving would be faster than the Skyliner. We’ve never driven to parks, and have always been happy with the bus. I’m looking forward to riding Skyliner, but just wondering if it will get us there early enough for rope drop/RotR lottery.
Thanks to your advice this summer, we booked a rental car for an upcoming trip. (thanks!) Would renting a car v Uber/Lyft simply be a matter of preference and cost, or would you recommend one over the other? (we’re renting DVC points, so have the free parking perk)
Hi Tom,
We will be at Disney in 2 weeks staying at the Poly.
I have heard advice that says to get Uber to drop you off at the Speedway near HS and the Swan/Dolphin area, and walk to HS. We would like to get in line for MMRR or SDD before 10 am. And a RoTR boarding pass is THE goal of the day.
Any thoughts on that plan and suggestions on time of arrival? Thanks.
Just a suggestion, when attempting to get a boarding group for ROTR, find good WiFi signal away from other guests. I found a good signal in the area between Raiders of the Lost Ark and 59’s Prime Time Cafe. Have a watch with a second hand visible because it literally fills up in 1 second. Yep, 1 second. My theory is if you’re in a queue with hundreds of others competing for WiFi your chances are slimmer of getting through. This strategy worked for me and I’ve seen where it works consistently for others on YouTube videos. Good luck and have a blast!
How many people can fit in an Uber vehicle?
I have used Uber, Lyft and the Disney Transportation. It all depends on where I am going and how fast I want to get there. For some reason my wife and I like Lyft over Uber. Can’t really put it into words but we just feel it’s better.
Tom, in regards to the tight security guard at Contemporary….with the current restrictions of having to have a resort reservations in order to park, would there be any issues getting dropped off there? I hope not as this sounds like a great alternative for us as we are staying at POP in Dec for Christmas and would use this option for MK and then also Uber to AK.
When we used disney bus transportation, the ceiling hatch was open to allow some ventilation, though I acknowledge that is not perfect. We used uber a couple times and one time the driver “wore” his mask well below his nose and mouth and turning talked throughout the ride and even coughed a few times. That was the last time we used uber on our trip.
I can’t see how a small/midsize vehicle is BETTER for ventilation than a bus that presumably has been cleaned/disinfected by Disney on a schedule. Are you saying that windows are not allowed to be opened? And how do you know if the driver is asymptomatic? This is a crazy time and having MORE vehicles on the road is just crazier.
To my knowledge, windows are not open on the bus. Since surface transmission is far less likely than respiratory droplets or inhalation of aerosols, ventilation matters far more than cleaning or disinfecting.
We visit WDW every year over Christmas week. We have a reservation for this year which we will be cancelling.
And now it’s being suggested that we avoid the WDW buses? I am sure they are cleaned a LOT more often any Uber or other ride share program. Not that I will be getting into anyone’s private car anyway.
Given the lack of fast passes, magical hours, park hopping, limited eateries open and having to wear the dreaded mask, and NO reduction in prices from WDW for the inconveniences … we will be cancelling our trip this year.
you realize, of course, that there are still thousands of Disney cast members that are unemployed particularly bus drivers. why would you encourage people to use something other than Disney transportation to get around thus keeping people from getting their jobs back?
What’s keeping bus drivers from being called back to work is the hotels that have not reopened, not Uber and Lyft.
Moreover, people drive those vehicles, too.
We are staying at Pop in December. So the best way to get to Magic Kingdom with Uber is request a ride to Contemporary and then walk to MK. Is that correct?
I was there a couple of weeks ago at Pop Century. The skyliner was a joke in the morning. Not organized and long long lines at the Caribbean Beach transfer station. Luckily we realized this on our Epcot day so we instead had an Uber drop us off at Boardwalk around 8:15 am. We walked to Hollywood studios and were amongst the first in line to go into the park. Got let in early and rode both Runaway Railway and ToT before the 10am lottery. Got 24 boarding group. I am not sure when you get in line when dropped off by Uber or parking your own car but this was GREAT for us !
Did you have any issues getting dropped off at the Boardwalk by Uber?
With a scooter, I am forced to use buses or skylineR. Any advice that might help minimize the current downside of buses for the handicapped.
Tom and Darlene
I am researching the same topic for our early December trip as well. Per uber website it appears no handicapped vehicle is available at wdw.